“Beanstalk”

Beanstalk Protoype 2

This is the new version of our game “Beanstalk”. This iteration focuses on explicitly teaching balance to the player, as they must plant flowers to counter balance the different bugs falling onto the plank. Our design is based heavily on a research paper done by CMU professor Robert Siegler on balance experiments.

To play the game, water a pod to make a flower grow that balances against the falling bugs that land on the plank. You can choose your character, Jack or Jackie. Below you can find different versions of our game.

Play the Web Version!

As of November, 2012, old versions of Beanstalk have been retired, replaced with the version you can find here.

Beanstalk Prototype 1

This is our first iteration of the beanstalk game. This version of the game involves helping Jack climb up a magic beanstalk by watering pods to grow vines.

To run the game: Unzip the folder and run the .exe file. The objective is to have the in-game avatar (in this build, Jack) reach the platform (the animated cloud) by growing the beanstalk. When you are confident in your stalk selection, press the space bar on your keyboard to have Jack climb.

Here is a more refined version of our “Beanstalk” protoype. This version has better level sequencing conducive to a child’s learning. First, they are taught the basic mechanics of the game: watering bulbs to get the vine to grow, and pressing space bar to signal Jack to climb. Then they are introduced to having to water two bulbs in order to keep the stalk balanced for Jack to climb successfully. Then they are introduced to variables related to length. Then lastly, they are introduced to variables related to weight.